Great Grandma’s Italian Potato Salad

This potato salad is one that I grew up on as a child and has been handed down through the years from generation to generation. To this day, it’s still a staple at every, single family BBQ that we have. In fact, it was one of those dishes that we looked forward to the most at mealtime. It wasn’t a BBQ without Great Grandma’s Italian Potato Salad on hand!

In keeping with tradition, I made this tonight as a side to my BBQ chicken breasts and as usual, it was a hit. Even my 4 year old son who happens to be a fairly picky eater (thought not as bad as my daughter) finally gave in and tried this for the first time. He LOVED it and devoured over 3 helpings of potato salad. It’s a very simple and basic recipe and unlike other potato salads it does not include mayo. Instead, it’s generously seasoned with extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, and a little oregano. This potato salad goes great with pretty much anything you can think to grill up. In particular, it’s the perfect side dish for burgers, hot dogs, and chicken but it’s even delicious all on its own. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Yukon Gold potatoes, about 3-3.5 lbs

1 dozen large eggs, hard boiled and sliced

extra virgin olive oil, to taste

salt, pepper, and oregano, to taste

Instructions

Choose potatoes that are roughly the same size so that they cook evenly. Gently scrub them under water to get all of the dirt off. Leave the skins on and place them in a large pot and cover with cold water. Add about 1 tablespoon of Kosher salt to the water so that the potatoes absorb the flavor while cooking.

Bring the potatoes to a boil and then lower the heat to a rolling simmer. Cook the potatoes about 15-18 minutes, depending on their size. When a knife easily pierces through the potato, they are ready. Do not overcook them or you will have mashed potatoes instead of potato salad.

While the potatoes are cooking hard boil a dozen eggs. Cover the eggs with cold water, bring to a boil, then remove them from the heat, cover the pot and let them sit for about 20 minutes. Run them under cold water, peel, and slice.

Drain the potatoes and run them under cold water to cool them off. Slip the skins off of the potatoes, they should come off easily, and then cut into even sized chunks.

In a large bowl combine the potatoes and sliced eggs, season with salt, pepper, and oregano and then drizzle about 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil into the bowl. Toss gently with your hands or a large spoon. Adjust the oil and seasonings to taste.

You can serve this warm or cold. If you chill the potato salad beforehand it may dry out a little in the fridge as the potatoes will continue to absorb the oil. If that happens, just drizzle in a little extra oil and give it a gentle toss before serving.

**NOTE** – You can use whatever potatoes you have on hand for this recipe, they will taste just as good in the salad. I happen to love Yukon Golds because they have a nice buttery flavor and creamy texture.

Also, you can adjust the ratio of potatoes to eggs to your liking. Sometimes I will add in a few extra eggs, you just have to adjust the seasonings and oil.